Veterans Attribute Health Issues To Burning Waste

By: Courtney Costello- Talk Radio News Service

The House has proposed new legislation that would close improperly facilitated burn pits used by U.S. military personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan. The legislation would also mandate health screenings for veterans who were exposed to toxins released from the pits, which are large ditches used to dispose of garbage and waste.

The Military Personnel War Zone Toxic Exposure Prevention Act would require the Secretary of Defense to establish a medical surveillance system that would pinpoint troops that have been exposed to hazardous chemicals burned in the pits. The act would also prohibit the military from discarding waste that omits dangerous levels of toxins.

“We believe it is premature to dismiss concern raised about burn pits after only a few years. Our country’s difficult experiences with agent orange and Gulf War illness taught us we must be vigilant in monitoring and treating our veterans long after they have returned from the battlefield,” said Rep. Tim Bishop (D-N.Y.).

 Despite the fact that the military has purchased incinerators, the burn pits have become an indefinite solution to get rid of waste.
 
“[The burn pits are producing] 250 tons of waste everyday. Some of our troops are working directly inside of these pits with no protection,” said Kerry Baker, the Assistant National Legislative Director of the Disabled American Veterans.

Medical concerns that have been raised include chronic bronchitis, asthma, sleep apnea, allergy-like symptoms, lung problems and lymphoma.

“Where all of the trash from the base and from the base hospital was burned just over the wall...we lived under a cloud of smoke from that continuous fire, and everyone was affected on some level,” said Tom Tarantino, an Iraq War veteran and a policy associate for the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.

According to Rep. Bishop, the Department of Defense currently maintains that there are no long term health issues related to troops being exposed to burn pits.

Petraeus: Beating Terrorists Requires More Than Counterterrorist Operations

By Celia Canon- Talk Radio News Service

General David Petraeus, Commander of the United States Central Command, warned that military missions against terrorist groups are comprehensive and require more than force.

 “Countering terrorism requires more than counter-terrorist operations,” said Petraeus today in a speech to the Center of a New American Security.  The General went on to discuss the implications of shifting military attention from Iraq to Afghanistan and Pakistan and how the U.S.’ experience in Iraq should optimize the efficiency of military operations in other countries.

“As we turn and shift our focus to Afghanistan and Pakistan it is very important to reflect on what we learned from Iraq and to remember that you have to apply what was learned there with a very nuanced understanding...of local circumstances,” said Petraeus.

Petraeus was one of the leading figures during the 2007 surge of U.S. troops in Iraq, a move that increased U.S. military capability in the Middle East by more than 20,000 soldiers and additional brigades. The surge was instrumental in the counterinsurgency mission that would help secure the region. Petraeus completed his work in Iraq by rebuilding the Iraqi army. 

Petraeus highlighted the success of the U.S. army in improving security conditions, stating “We’ve gone from a situation in which June of 2006 or 2007 saw 160 attacks per day on average. in Iraq it is now between 10 and 15 attacks per day and has been that way for about 6 months now; in fact in the low end of that in recent weeks.”

However, Petraeus did concede that last month was an exception. There were over 400 attacks in May, the highest in the country’s post-invasion history.

The General touched upon the peacekeeping role that the army has recently acquired with the Iraq mission and named the safety of the civilian population as a major priority.

“The overriding mission of a military force in counterinsurgency has to be to secure the people and...be seen as securing and serving them. This is hugely important,” said Petraeus.

Petraeus explained that once security has been established throughout the country, the U.S. would not be able to leave Afghanistan until they have assured that the established government follows a peace-ensuring criteria.

Afghanistan And Iraq At Risk For Contracting Fraud

By Justin Duckham-Talk Radio News Service

A dilapidated U.S. compound in Kabul plagued with broken pipes and an unusable sewage system is only one of many examples that U.S. reconstruction efforts in the Middle East continue to be susceptible to incompetence, wasteful spending, and fraud at the hands of contractors, according to the Commission on War Time Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“We don’t have enough people watching the contractors. Seventy percent of our contracts go to sub-contractors...we have to get the information second hand. We need to reexamine that,” said Christopher Shays, the current co-Chairman of the Commission on War Time Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan, during a hearing held today with the House Subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs.

Shay, and fellow co-Chairman Michael J. Thibault’s testimony coincides with the release of their Committee’s interim report detailing the extent of the mismanagement in the two countries. The report highlighted several key issues including the presence of an insufficient amount staff for supervision, technological limitations within the contractors’ companies including out-of-date billing and labor systems, and an overall lack of accountability.

KBR, a Texas based construction and engineering company that acted as the military’s sole contractor for the Logistics Civil Augmentation Program, was named as one of the company’s responsible for losing billions of dollars in wasteful spending.

“I don’t think we’re aware of another program, contrac, or contractor that has had this number of suspensions or referrals,” said Defense Contract Audit Agency Director April Stephenson during a May hearing with the Commission on War Time Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan.

There are 240,000 contractor employees aiding the U.S. in Iraq, Afghanistan, and surrounding areas. Since 2001 1,360 contractor employees have been killed in the two countries.

Iraqi Government Official: Iraqi Security Ready for U.S Withdrawal

By Celia Canon- Talk Radio News Service

On Monday, Dr. Rafe Al-Eissawi, Iraq’s deputy prime minister, made a speech at the Carnegie Endowment For International Peace Center in which he addressed the issue of U.S withdrawal from Iraq. Al-Eissawi insists that Iraqi security forces are ready to take over the protection of the country.

Al-Eissawi was optimistic that the Iraqi security forces could meet the requirements expected by the U.S to allow for the American withdrawal of its troops to optimize Iraqi stability and security after the 2010 Iraqi general elections that will determine the new members of the national parliament.

"Let me say this as plainly as I can: by August 31, 2010, our combat mission in Iraq will end," announced U.S. President Barack Obama on February 28.

Speaking on his assessment of the withdrawal, Al-Eissawi said “We consider the Iraqi forces are capable of controlling the situation.”

Iraq has acknowledged and taken measures to fill the vacuum left by the rapid departure of American forces and the gradual dispersion of American influence, Al-Eissawi said. “We are fully aware of the challenges that may take place accompanying this control shift of transition from mixed Iraqi-American to purely Iraqi security forces.”

But Al-Eissawi recognized that the Iraqi security forces’ capacity to take over the security of Iraq would not come immediately but would rather require that the national forces remain under American auspices, saying that Iraq “may need the American force in the next period, focusing more and more on training and some logistic support, which is considered to make a great difference.”

According to Al-Eissawi, the effectiveness of the withdrawal depends upon “The necessity of commitment and implementation of the SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement that provides a framework of cooperation between two countries as one state stations troops in another state) between Iraq and America and the timing of withdrawal of the main troops from the main cities and the capacity building of the Iraqi security forces that will be able to cover the security vacuum that may take place accompanying the withdrawal.”

Supreme Court: U.S. Courts Have No Jurisdiction To Hear Suits Against Iraq

By Courtney Ann Jackson-Talk Radio News Service

According to federal law, foreign countries cannot be sued by individuals in the U.S. and that is one of the points the Supreme Court had to consider before releasing its decision today. But an exception applies that a country can be sued by American citizens if it is designated as a sponsor of terrorism. Immunity is ordinarily attached to foreign sovereigns.
 
In 2003, Congress authorized the President to make exceptions with respect to Iraq, which was designated as a sponsor of terrorism. The Emergency Wartime Supplemental Appropriations Act repealed previous restrictions. President George W. Bush said that year that EWSAA allowed him to “make inapplicable with respect to Iraq of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 or any other provision of law that applies to countries that have supported terrorism.”

That same year, families of torture victims filed suits against Iraq, alleging mistreatment by Iraqi officials during, and following the 1991 Gulf War. Kenneth Beaty is a U.S. citizen who was working as an oil-rig supervisor in Kuwait when he was arrested by Iraqi border guards after asking them for driving directions. William Barloon was serving as an aircraft maintenance supervisor in Kuwait when border police also arrested him. The two men were taken to prison in Baghdad where they were allegedly denied basic living necessities and their case is entitled Republic of Iraq v. Beaty.

The unanimous Supreme Court decision was delivered today by Justice Scalia. It stated that Iraq’s sovereign immunity was restored when the President exercised his EWSAA authority to make Iraq an exception. The ruling said that the U.S. courts therefore lost jurisdiction to hear suits against Iraq and should have dismissed the cases at that point. The judgement of the Court of Appeals was reversed. The Court also decided that the subset provision applied to the President’s power to create waiver. However, the waivers created by that power or the restoration of Iraq’s sovereignty, are not affected by the sunset.